Boston Red Sox win Game 5 to clinch World Series
October 29, 2018
The Boston Red Sox dominated this year's World Series much as they had done their playoff series against the New York Yankees and the Houston Astros as well as the regular season, clinching the title with a 5-1 win in Los Angeles on Sunday night.
The Red Sox, who collected 108 victories in Major League Baseball's 162-game regular season, earned the final win on the back of solid starting pitching from David Price, who allowed just three hits before leaving the game in the eighth inning.
First baseman Steve Pearce, who was subsequently named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the World Series, led the Red Sox's offense, hitting two home runs in Game 5.
Pearce, 35, who had been acquired in a trade with the Toronto Blue Jays in June, posted a .333 batting average and a 1.167 slugging percentage in the World Series. This included three home runs and a crucial three-run double in Saturday's win in Game 4.
"This is the greatest feeling of my life. When you're a kid, this is where you want to be. And it's happening right now," Pearce said afterwards. "I'm in a dream right now."
"Seeing all these grown men over there, just acting like kids, that's what it's all about," Price said. "This is why I came to Boston."
This was the Boston's' ninth World Series title and the fourth since 2004, when the Red Sox ended an 86-year championship drought.
Their first-year manager, Alex Cora, became just the fifth rookie manager to win a World Series and the first ever from Puerto Rico. Cora had already won a World Series ring as a bench coach with last year's champions, the Houston Astros.
pfd/dv (AP, AFP, Reuters)